Instruments for checking physical characteristics: UK Tenders, Buyers & Competition
CPV 38400000·Supplies · class·in Laboratory, optical and precision equipments (excl. glasses)
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Tenders you can still bid for.
Notices at tender stage whose deadline has not passed, counted the way the search counts them: a notice shows under every code and region it names.
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Notices published in the last 12 months.
Counted per tender, not per lot, against the 12 months before where shown.
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How many companies usually bid for a lot here.
The middle value of the bid counts that award notices publish, one per lot. Only real competitions count: direct awards and framework places are left out.
Based on 7 lots from 6 competitions run by 5 buyers, last 36 months. A buyer with many similar contests counts only up to a limit. All 7 lots are from older notices, which count bids received.
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What a contract here is usually worth.
Middle value of published award values, VAT excluded. Framework ceilings are left out because they are not real contract values.
Based on 11 awards with a usable value, last 36 months.
Published values, not actual spend.
Codes and neighbouring classes
The 8-digit CPV codes notices in this class actually use, and the other classes of the same division
38400000 Instruments for checking physical characteristics34 notices · 83%- Detection and analysis apparatus 181 · 12m
- Machines and apparatus for testing and measuring 54 · 12m
- Astronomical and optical instruments 53 · 12m
- Photographic equipment 51 · 12m
- Surveying, hydrographic, oceanographic and hydrological instruments and appliances 44 · 12m
- Instruments for measuring quantities 41 · 12m
- Microscopes 34 · 12m
- Instruments for measuring flow, level and pressure of liquids and gases 24 · 12m
- Meteorological instruments 19 · 12m
- Measuring instruments 19 · 12m
- All of Laboratory, optical and precision equipments (excl. glasses) →
Who buysi
Which buyers publish the most notices here.
Buyers ranked by the number of notices, duplicate names merged.
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Which buyers publish the most notices here.
Buyers ranked by the number of notices, duplicate names merged.
All notices carrying this code · official UK_CA_TYPE where published (NHS bodies are central government authorities), else derived from the authority name
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What kinds of public bodies buy here.
Notices by the buyer’s type as published, otherwise by its name.
Education & universities71%(29 notices)
29 of 41 notices are Education & universities (71%).Central government12%(5 notices)
5 of 41 notices are Central government (12%).Other public bodies5%(2 notices)
2 of 41 notices are Other public bodies (5%).Not classified12%(5 notices)
5 of 41 notices are Not classified (12%).
| Contracting authority | Type | Notices | Last 12 months | Open now |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of St Andrews | Education & universities | 8 | 2 | 0 |
| THE UNIVERSITY OF BIRMINGHAM | Education & universities | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| UK Research and Innovation | Central government | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Cardiff University | Education & universities | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| University of Bath | Education & universities | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| University of Lincoln | Education & universities | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Agri-Food and BioSciences Institute | not classified | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Durham University | Education & universities | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| NHS Blood and Transplant | Central government | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| NI Water and its subsidiaries | not classified | 1 | 0 | 0 |
27 distinct authorities in total · the ten most active shown.
Where the work is deliveredi
Where the work on these notices is delivered.
Delivery regions published on the notices. A notice with several regions counts in each.
Where the work is, not where the buyer is based.
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Where the work on these notices is delivered.
Delivery regions published on the notices. A notice with several regions counts in each.
Where the work is, not where the buyer is based.
Delivery regions (ITL1) published on 31 of 41 notices · a notice covering several regions counts in each · competition columns: contracts awarded in the last 36 months, lots delivered in the region
| Region | Notices | Bids / lot | SME wins | Local wins |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scotland | — | — | — | |
| South West England | — | — | — | |
| East Midlands | — | — | — | |
| Yorkshire and the Humber | — | — | — | |
| West Midlands | — | — | — | |
| Northern Ireland | — | — | — | |
| South East England | — | — | — | |
| North East England | — | — | — | |
| East of England | — | — | — |
Local wins = the winner’s registered region is the delivery region. Dashes: fewer than ten observations.
How it is boughti
How work here is packaged.
Notices by commercial tool: a single contract, a framework, or a dynamic purchasing system.
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How work here is packaged.
Notices by commercial tool: a single contract, a framework, or a dynamic purchasing system.
Commercial tool, procedure route and threshold as published on the notice, not a legal-regime claim
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How work here is packaged.
Notices by commercial tool: a single contract, a framework, or a dynamic purchasing system.
Contract100%(41 notices)
41 of 41 notices are Contract (100%).
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Which procedures buyers here use.
Notices by the procedure they declare: open, selective, limited or direct. Open and selective are competitions; limited and direct are not.
Open51%(21 notices)
21 of 41 notices are Open (51%).Limited / restricted17%(7 notices)
7 of 41 notices are Limited / restricted (17%).Direct award15%(6 notices)
6 of 41 notices are Direct award (15%).Route not published15%(6 notices)
6 of 41 notices are Route not published (15%).Selective2%(1 notices)
1 of 41 notices are Selective (2%).
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How much of this market is above the legal threshold.
Notices by whether the buyer marked them above or below the threshold that triggers the full rules.
Below threshold100%(1 notices)
1 of 1 notices are Below threshold (100%).
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How long bidders get to respond.
Middle value in days from the tender notice to its deadline.
Competition
Contracts published in the last 36 months (19) · bid counts per lot from award notices · values are net contract awards, framework and DPS ceilings excluded · SME and local status as declared
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The usual range of contract values here.
The middle half of published award values, VAT excluded, with the middle value marked. Framework ceilings are left out.
Published values, not actual spend.
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How many companies usually bid for a lot here.
The middle value of the bid counts that award notices publish, one per lot. Only real competitions count: direct awards and framework places are left out.
Based on 7 lots from 6 competitions run by 5 buyers, last 36 months. A buyer with many similar contests counts only up to a limit. All 7 lots are from older notices, which count bids received.
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How much of this market is actually put out to competition.
Notices run as an open or selective procedure, out of all notices that say which procedure was used. Direct awards count as not competed.
9 of 18 notices that state a procedure, last 36 months. 1 more give no procedure and are left out.
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What share of contracts go to small and medium firms.
Awards to a single supplier that declared its size. SME divided by all.
8 of 13 awards where the winner declared its size.
Who winsi
Which suppliers win the most here.
Suppliers ranked by the number of tenders won, not by money. A supplier on one big framework with many call-offs does not outrank one that won many separate competitions.
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Which suppliers win the most here.
Suppliers ranked by the number of tenders won, not by money. A supplier on one big framework with many call-offs does not outrank one that won many separate competitions.
Ranked by distinct procedures won on notices carrying this code, then award records · 44 awards to 33 suppliers
| Supplier | Procedures | Awards | Last 12 months | Buyers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quantum Design UK and Ireland Ltd | 3 | 4 | 0 | 3 |
| Refeyn | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| SHANDONG GELON LIB CO LTD | 1 | 4 | 0 | 1 |
| Anton Paar | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| NanoFCM CO., LTD | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| PROREC GmbH | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| Thermo Electron Manufacturing Ltd t/a Thermo Fisher Scientific | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| 10X Genomics Inc. | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Where to submiti
Where bids for this work are submitted.
Notices by the portal in their submission link, where one is published.
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Where bids for this work are submitted.
Notices by the portal in their submission link, where one is published.
E-sourcing portals named in the submission address · 13 of 41 notices name one · each portal page explains registration
About this data
- Source. Official UK public procurement notices (Find a Tender), reused under the Open Government Licence v3.0. New notices arrive through the day; the figures are rebuilt nightly.
- What counts here. Every notice with a CPV code starting 3840. A notice with several codes counts in each sector it names. Notices from 2021 to 2 Jul 2026.
- Competition. Bids and winners cover the last three years and count each lot as its own contest; frameworks and dynamic purchasing systems are shown apart from ordinary contracts.
- Why no total spend. Notice estimates often repeat a framework’s ceiling, so adding them up would overstate the market. Typical contract values are shown instead.
- Every figure shows what it rests on. Not every notice publishes a bid count, a value or a delivery region, so each figure carries the number of records behind it, and one built on few records is marked as such. The on a figure explains it; the counting rules are in the methodology. Spotted something wrong? Tell us.